essex buzzard

[David M]

Beautiful Adonis, Mark. Aptly named in this instance.

Sadly, one we don't have in Wales.

[essexbuzzard]

September was clearly a summer month this year, with a stunning heatwave early on, and warm, often sunny conditions throughout the month.

On the butterfly front though, it was rather disappointing. The mass emergence of Red Admirals I was hoping for never really materialised, though perhaps the hot weather was perfect for migration, and the new adults left the area straight away. Certainly there were plenty flying though on most days. No Painted Lady or Clouded Yellow were seen in my area,either.

But Comma numbers were reasonable. Certainly higher than last year, which was very poor.

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Mark.

Your experience of September sounds very similar to mine here in my part of the midlands.

Cheers,

Neil.

[Wurzel]

Lovely Autumnal shot there Essex My experience of September was similar to yours, whilst I did find a Cloudy I had to travel for it and September seemed quieter than last year for sure Still swings and roundabouts - next year might be a cracker - fingers crossed

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

Strange that September was disappointing for you, Mark. It was generally far better than normal here in south Wales, and this is a month where I am used to it being the other way round between here and the SE of England.

Brown Hairstreaks did well early in the month and once that heatwave started, Pierids enjoyed a bonanza (which is only just petering out now).

Red Admirals, Painted Ladies and Clouded Yellows were all about in very good numbers.

[essexbuzzard]

Thanks everyone. September was a tad disappointing, Butterfly wise. Especially given the heatwave.

David, it’s not a major surprise. The south-west receives far more Clouded Yellows, on average, than the south-east and East Anglia.

At the very end of September, a patch of Michaelmas daisies produced two Red Admirals.

And a Comma.

[essexbuzzard]

Well, it certainly was a wet October. Many parts of East Anglia has twice the average rainfall, which is all the more notable when one remembers no rain worth the mention fell in the first half of the month. Indeed, this was dominated by heatwave conditions, with temperatures of up to 25C. Pleasant enough for July, never mind October.

Consequently, Speckled Woods continued to emerge throughout the month. Here is one from early October.

And here’s another, freshly emerged on the 28th.

[essexbuzzard]

We were Copper spotting at one of my local sites on the 15th. Not surprisingly, most were showing their age, but there were still a few good ones present.

This one chose a particularly seasonal place to bask in the October sun.

[David M]

That Speckled Wood is indeed fresh for late October, Mark. Even round my way I've seen a few into November which is unusual.

[Wurzel]

Great to see the Specklies Essex - they occasionally make it as my 'final' sighting and when they keep emerging like that then all becomes clear Lovely looking Small Coppers, especially the first one with the diminutive markings

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[essexbuzzard]

In late October, we joined Naturetek on their Wallcreepers and Cranes tour in northern Spain. I’m pleased to say we saw both species, and a lot more besides!

Spain is a wonderfully diverse and scenic country and, inland, still relatively unspoilt. Indeed, the human population in rural Spain is decreasing, as more people move to the cities and coast.

The weather for the week was rather cloudy and chilly, which is a pity, for the previous week had seen some wonderfully warm, sunny conditions.

This was a bird tour, and I will indulge a little in that later. Of more relevance here, were a decent sprinkling of autumn butterfly species. One particular stubble field had lots of crucifers growing. Some were in flower, and these were attracting Bath Whites. Lots of them. Many of the females were egg-laying, choosing small, rosette plants. In this field alone there must have been dozens, if not hundreds of eggs, caterpillars, chrysalis and adults present, and there were several similar fields in the area.

[Goldie M]

Lovely shots of the Speckies essex, I didn't see too many this year, I think the weather affected them around here, lovely shots from Spain Goldie

[Wurzel]

Cracking shots of the Bath White Essex This is a species that I've got on my 'seen/not photographed' list Maybe next year, fingers crossed Love the dimorphism that it shows

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[essexbuzzard]

Thanks Goldie. Speckled Woods did alright round my way this week. I suspect the wet July, followed by a warm August, September and October played a part.

Thanks,Wurzel. Bath Whites are lovely butterflies, and fortunately common and widespread on the continent.

The Spanish version of Brown Argus was also present in the stubble field, including two mating pairs.

Common Blues were here too. I was hoping to turn one of them into something more exotic but, in reality, it was still a delight to see them, as they are long gone from home.

[David M]

Nice to see those Spanish species, Mark. Bath White and Southern Brown Argus might be common, but they're always good to have around.

[Wurzel]

Cracking seeing those SBAs Essex - that takes me back to my trip to Portugal, just as feisty as their more northern cousins

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[essexbuzzard]

Clouded Yellows were common throughout the area, appearing whenever it was warm enough.

Small Whites appeared in a couple of places. I photographed those I could, hoping to claim Southern Small White. But looking at the pictures, they all seem to be SW.

[essexbuzzard]

My last butterfly picture is of a Long Tailed Blue, seen at two locations. I also had a Lang’s, but didn’t manage a decent picture.

[essexbuzzard]

Cranes are one of the targets of this holiday, as the area is on one of the migration routes in Spain. We saw some decent flocks of them, but they are very flighty when they first arrive. So we had to keep our distance, and no pictures were possible. But their wonderful, haunting calls were very evocative.

Another target was the wallcreeper. This iconic, much sought after species was found in a couple of locations and, with my limited equipment, I managed this slightly cropped picture.

A bird of remote mountains in Britain, golden eagles are more common in Spain, in a much wider range of habitats. They can also be seen from roads, perching on posts and pylons, as buzzards do in Britain. This one was hunting rabbits in a vineyard.

[Wurzel]

I'd relish any photos of a Wallcreeper Essex I think they're on an awful lot of birds 'Most Wanted' lists

Have a goodun

Wurzel